Meet the Grads - Anushka
SEEK’s Graduate Programs are designed to support graduates to launch their careers, and around 80% of all participants are still working with SEEK. This highlights SEEK's success in effectively pipelining talent into the business.
To celebrate the success of our Graduate Programs, we speak to current and former grads, as they share insights about their career experiences so far.
Anushka Desai started at SEEK in February 2024 as part of the Strategy and Operations Graduate Program.
Compared to what you studied at university, is the Graduate Program what you expected?
It’s so different to what I studied! What is transferable from my economics degree is less about the content and more about the skills that I use. I don't think any of us in the program has a better or worse starting point in the program because of our degrees.
There's a few Bachelor of Commerce graduates this year in my cohort, but there's also a graduate that studied aerospace engineering, and someone that used to work as a doctor. I didn't realise how much you can influence the outcomes of the program for yourself, and that’s less about what you studied, and more about your approach.
What drew you to SEEK’s Graduate Program?
There’s something about the nature of SEEK, despite its size, that separates it from other companies. The program had the perfect combination of a larger, established company offering, combined with the best parts of a smaller, boutique experience. SEEK offered mentorship from experienced senior people. Mentorship was an aspect that appealed to me. The diversity of experience was also something that I was very interested in. Being able to pick four rotations from a broad pool of teams was a key part of my decision.
I think that the main draw was relationships, both with mentors and with peers. When there's a smaller graduate cohort, there is the opportunity to meet more people at the company. That makes a such a positive difference to the experience. Feeling a sense of togetherness with the rest of the company, even though it is so big.
What rotations have you been on so far, and which have you liked best?
The first two rotations of the first year are already set. One rotation is in Strategy, as this is the basis of the program. The Strategy team offer learning and development training throughout the program, even when we move to different rotations. The next rotation is in AI and Platform Services (AIPS), in a product management role.
Strategy was especially good for mentorship as there's so much experience in that team. AIPS, is a product focused role, so there's a lot of stakeholder management, executing and delivering. As a graduate, there's a quick ramp up into building hands on skills, which means we are able to develop skills quickly.
After AIPS, I will have two more rotations, so I will have even more exposure to the business.
Do you have an area of SEEK that you hope to work in after you complete the Graduate Program?
I really enjoyed my Strategy rotation and I’m leaning towards that area. But over the last year I've been exposed to more business units and teams that I would love to be in post-program, that I wouldn't have thought of before this year. That’s a real benefit of the program – I’ve been able to learn and be exposed to areas of the business that I didn’t think of while I was studying.
Coming into the Graduate Program, what surprised you most?
What surprised me is how much the program experience is up to you. That’s at every level: the rotations themselves, after the first year you can pick the next two. You also have the flexibility to talk to a team or a manager and seek out your own rotations if there's a particular area you’re interested in.
Everyone that I've worked with is happy to mould the experience. Maybe it’s just the culture at SEEK, but they really have our interests at heart. I can work on a project if I identify it as an area that I want to develop skills in, it’s just a matter of putting my hand up. If I want more responsibility and autonomy, it's easy to ask for it.
Click here is you're interested in learning more about SEEK's Grad programs